Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC) received nearly $350,000 in instructional equipment donations in the 2014–15 school year, and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) will allocate an additional $350,000 through its Leveraged Equipment Donation Matching Program.

The program, launched in 2014, seeks to improve collegiate relations with local business partners. MnSCU has a history of forming industry partnerships to help benefit its students, staff and faculty.

“We are so grateful to MCTC’s partners. These donations reflect industry confidence in our faculty and students,” said Vice President of Academic Affairs Gail O’Kane. “We will continue to deliver with these partnerships.”

The following Twin Cities businesses made donations to MCTC programs during the 2014–2015 academic year:

MnSCU Academic and Student Affairs (ASA) has awarded a $10,000 grant for MCTC, in partnership with other MnSCU schools, to host a day-long summit this fall on developmental education best practices.

This winter, MnSCU ASA invited all MnSCU institutions to submit proposals to receive a grant of up to $10,000 per proposal for regional educational summits for developmental education. Three grants were awarded.

Normandale Community College, in collaboration with Century College, Dakota County Technical College, Inver Hills Community College and MCTC, will host a day-long summit on developmental education focused on highlighting best practices both nationally and locally. The summit, with support of the institutional partnerships, will be action-oriented with a significant portion of the day dedicated to providing each implementation team with a planning session facilitated by compression planning facilitators. Teams will then identify key issues they wish to address at their institutions and will develop detailed communication and action plans tailored to their college’s needs. The summit will include a keynote presentation from Dr. Hunter Boylen and provide each institution time to share best practices.

The Basilica of Saint Mary and Minneapolis Community and Technical College present Spirit and Soul, A Celebration of Black Performance Styles. This evening of dance, song, and poetry will bring to you performance styles of the Caribbean, West Africa, Brazil, and the United States. The night will be a festive exploration of how elements of African musical traditions transformed, or blended, with European music, catalyzing new forms of expression from capoeira to rock and roll.

When: Friday April 17, 7–9 p.m.

Where: Basilica of Saint Mary
1600 Hennepin Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403

This event is FREE and open to the public! Parking is also free in the MCTC ramp. For more information, contact Sandy Jacobson at sandra.jacobson@minneapolis.edu or 612-659-6316.

Artwork for this event was created by MCTC student Edward Johnson, featured in this fall 2014 City College News story.

Minneapolis Community and Technical College will collaborate with Augsburg College, Minneapolis Public Schools and Saint Paul Public Schools to utilize funds from a recent Bush Foundation grant to build educational infrastructure that intentionally recruits teacher candidates of color, improves their clinical experiences while training, and supports their smooth transition into a teaching career.

“Currently, about 97 percent of teachers in Minnesota are white,” said Kristy Snyder, dean of Academic Foundations. “MCTC has a strong record of engaging future teachers of color in our culturally competent teacher education program to prepare them for their future classrooms. Around 60 percent of students in MCTC’s educational programs are students of color. This grant encourages creative ways to recruit and retain teacher candidates of color, and because of that, Augsburg reached out to us to collaborate with them.”

This effort to recruit and support teacher candidates of color comes amidst the climate of teacher shortages in areas like special education and ESOL, and also in light of a large portion of the state teacher population approaching retirement age. The grant will strengthen the existing connection between MCTC’s two-year program and transfer opportunities to Augsburg while providing supplementary support to candidates to ensure their success as new teachers.

“The program at MCTC is very focused on cultural competency,” said Snyder. “For this reason, we currently attract many teacher candidates of color. By strengthening our articulation agreement with Augsburg, we strengthen the incentive for candidates to complete MCTC’s program, transfer and be placed.”

“Our greater goal is to utilize our community resources to close the state’s achievement gap,” said Snyder. “This is the perfect opportunity to make use of the talent and experience in our own communities.”

MCTC will host a Future Teacher Conference on March 7 for individuals interested in learning more about MCTC’s educational programs. Registration will be available soon on the Minneapolis Public Schools website.

Exhibit runs Dec. 15–Jan. 23; features award-winning photos and literary works about war

Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC) is honored to host the national traveling photography exhibit titled Always Lost: A Meditation on War. The memorial, comprised of thousands of photographs of U.S. military veterans and various literary works, was created by Western Nevada College and has been touring the country since 2010. It has received praise nationwide for its poignant memorials of past, current and future veterans.

The exhibit will be on display on the third floor of the MCTC Helland Student Center between Dec. 15 and Jan. 23 and can be viewed during MCTC’s hours of operation. A private space will be available adjacent to the exhibit for reflection. Images in the exhibit may contain graphic content and may not be suitable for children.

“The exhibit allows us to reflect on the costs of war, and highlights the importance of bringing service members all the way home, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well,” said Miki Huntington, MCTC Political Science instructor and veteran.

MCTC will host the exhibit in support of its participation in the statewide Beyond the Yellow Ribbon (BYTR) initiative. This initiative is intended to provide comprehensive support, resources and recognition for veterans on college campuses. The MCTC BTYR initiative is driven by a committee consisting of students, faculty and staff at the College.